The Advantages To Earning An English Degree
Earning a degree in English provides students with a well rounded, versatile education based upon all aspects of communication through studies based in history, language, culture, and analytical thinking. Students within English programs learn means of increasing spelling and grammatical skills, effectively communicate, develop critical thinking skills, and increase research and analytical skills. Additionally, students who participate in English degree programs gain the ability to specialize training within several concentrations including literature, writing, rhetoric, and poetry. Additionally, students who participate in English degree programs gain the ability to specialize training within several concentrations including literature, writing, rhetoric, poetry, information technology, and other related fields.
Many students manage work and family responsibilities in addition to educational obligations and most colleges and universities have developed online programs to extend education beyond traditional, on campus locations. Online programs offer virtually the same educational experiences as their on campus equivalents with additional benefits of increased flexibility in course scheduling and 24 hour access to course materials. Additionally, most online classes feature smaller class sizes, in groups of 25 students or less, and provide increased access to classmates and professors through one on one Internet chats. Many students find online programs are one of the best, most affordable, and increasingly convenient means of propelling personal and educational goals.
What Students Learn Within An English Degree Program
Students within English degree programs gain the skills and knowledge necessary to work within a number of careers. Many students begin their education within associate’s degree programs to improve their basic understanding of the field. Courses at an associate’s degree level include: composition and reading; advanced composition and introduction to literature; advanced composition and critical thinking; creative writing: poetry; creative writing: short fiction; introduction to the novel and short story; introduction to world literature to 1500; introduction to world literature from 1500 to present; American literature to 1850; American literature: 1850 to present; film appreciation; children’s literature; adolescent literature; folklore; introduction to African-American literature; introduction to Chicano literature; women in literature; introduction to modern Asian literature; introduction to Latin-American literature; mass media and the public; introduction to Native American literature, mythology and the oral tradition; special topics in English; introduction to psychology; introduction to biology; introduction to philosophy; and an internship experience. Graduates who complete studies within associate’s degree programs may advance to employment or continue studies within a bachelor degree program.
Bachelor level courses offer students the ability to expand knowledge within the discipline of English as well as specialized knowledge through a variety of electives. Courses within a bachelor program include: rhetoric and college writing; college writing and civic engagement; writing studio; exploring literature; introduction to film; introduction to literature; introduction to American literature; introduction to British literature; introduction to poetry; introduction to fiction; introduction to writing poetry; European short fiction; advanced composition; introduction to literary theory and criticism; the British Victorian novel; early American literature; American literature: 1865 to present; European cinema; literature and the Bible; mythology; expository writing; topics in English studies; writing in the social and behavioral sciences; major figures in British literature: 1700 to 1900; introduction to literary genres; Milton; Chauce and his era; Arthurian literature; the British romantics; the British novel from Dickens to Hardy; major figures in British literature since 1900; contemporary British literature; American literature 1820-1865; the American novel 1865-1915; African-American literature; symbolist movement in Europe; literature between wars; major figures in American literature since 1900; contemporary American novel; Midestern literature; literature and culture of early America; Fedor Dostoevsky; themes in literature; major women writers; creative writing; European literature: Ancient Greek and Biblical motifs; creative writing: nonfiction; professional and technical writing; writing essays and reveiws; literary heroines from around the world; theory and practice of composition and rhetoric in the American unversity; literary genres; classics in children’s literature; introduction to world literature: East to West; global awareness: topics in English studies; interdisciplinary study of work; global awareness: topics in English studies; engagement experience: topics in English studies; memoirs across cultures; and effective tutoring through service learning. Students who complete bachelor degree programs often advance to employment or continue studies within graduate programs.
Master’s level courses in the field of English offer students specialized studies necessary for a variety of career possibilities. Master’s level courses include: semantics; bibliography; linguistics: grammar; rhetoric poetry and its afterlife in saga; theories of teaching writing; American Renaissance; major American poets; American writers in perspective; major modern American novelists; literary criticism; the English novel; Old English literature; topics in Shakespeare; Milton; sensation and moral action in Thomas Hardy; 19th Century American fiction; realism and naturalism; machine art; Victorian literature: poverty and materiality; Whitman and Williams: Contact and Utopia; Contemporary Anglophone fiction; Samuel Beckett and Jean Genet; selected British writers 1500-1660; selected British writers 1660-1780; selected British writers 1832-1900; modern British literature; Chaucer; modern drama; early dramatic literature; studies in American literary periods; American fiction; contemporary literature; introduction to film literature; English syntax; advanced poetry writing; advanced fiction writing; psycholinguistics; technical writing; socialinguistics; master’s thesis; and an internship experience. Graduates from master’s degree programs may advance to employment or continue education within doctoral degree programs.
Doctoral degree programs offer students the ability and skills necessary to qualify as experts within the field of English. Doctoral degree courses include: Postcolonial poetics; tragedy: the changing forms of unchanging genres; charmed circles: women writing comedy and satire in the long Eighteenth Century; Canterbury Tales; letters and lives; from rebellion to Modernism: crosscurrents of the 1920s; affective politics in the Elizabethan history play; James Joyce Finnegan’s Wake; early American Speculations: aesthetics and risks in the circum-Atlantic world; meaning of media; faking it: American women writers and the masks of Modernism; aestheticizing science: the cross-fertilization of contemporary science and literary narrative; the practice of everyday life; the archive’s seductions: memories, ephemera and shiny things; marvels sacred and profane: Medieval and Renaissance drama; theory and practice of literary scholarships; Walt Whitman’s America and Harriet Beecher Stowe’s and John Brown’s, Too: literature, culture, and society; dissertation workshop; contemporary narrative theory; Victorian martial models; Romantics concepts of nature; Black feminism and the Civil Rights movement; postcolonial African narratives; rex quondam et futurus: the legend of King Arthur in Medieval and modern literature; a dissertation; and a clinical experience. Graduates who complete doctoral degree programs advance to positions as experts within colleges, universities, and research facilities.
Prospective Jobs For Graduates With English Degrees
English degree graduates gain a solid educational background which enables them to qualify for a variety of careers. Many employers seek graduates with English backgrounds of the skills they possess and their abilities to increase communication, utilize information, and critically analyze a diverse number of work related situations. As with most occupations, English degree graduates gain employment based upon level of education, area/s of specialty, and related work experience. Graduates generally advance to employment within communication, business, public relations, research, and writing professions upon completion of an English degree. Graduates with associate’s degrees often work as administrative assistants, instructional aides, teacher’s assistants, and even assistant desktop publishers.
Graduates who complete bachelor degree programs often gain employment as technical writers, copywriters, editorial assistants, reporters, journalists, managing editors, speechwriters, or with additional training, English teachers. Graduates who complete master’s degree programs generally advance to positions as publishers, advertising managers, marketing specialists, teachers, editors, journalists, or even executives within businesses and firms. Graduates who complete doctoral degree programs often work as editors, publishers, university instructors, researchers, or executives within businesses or self operated firms.
Salary Range For English Degree Graduates
Graduates who complete studies within English degree programs have earnings based upon their level of education, organization of employment, area of specialty, work experience, and geographic location. The U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics (BLS) reports average annual earnings for salaried authors and writers range from $38,150 to $75,060 annually. Graduates who work in advertising, newspaper, publishing, and public relations organizations tend to have higher earnings than graduates who work in other businesses. Graduates with associate’s degrees who advance to positions as administrative assistants generally earn $23,160 to $36,020 annually. Bachelor degree graduates who work as journalists have salaries $25,760 to $52,160 annually. Graduates with master’s degrees who work as instructors within high schools or vocational schools earn $39,460 to $59,470 annually. Doctoral degree graduates who work as English professors earn $43,770 to $83,600 annually.
Career Outlook and Advancement Opportunities For English Degree Graduates
Graduates who complete studies within English degrees gain the ability to work within a variety of industries using skills learned through educational training. An increasing number of employers seek candidates with English backgrounds to increase communication, utilize information, and critically analyze aspects of business management and the presentation of information. Graduates with English degrees will find the best job prospects within writing, editing, marketing, advertising, teaching, and public relations positions. The U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics reports job growth for authors, editors, and writers will increase by 8 percent at a fast as average rate in comparison to other occupations through 2018. Competition is expected to be heavy for salaried writing and editing jobs as the number of qualified applicants will surpass the number of available jobs.
Despite competition, many graduates may find employment within teaching positions and other industries. Graduates who specialize training in information technology and web/multimedia fields, continue education, and gain work experience through internships are expected to find increased employability in comparison to graduates with less training and education. Graduates may also find increased job prospects in related fields, like teaching. The BLS reports job growth for qualified teachers is expected to increase by 13 percent at a faster than average rate in comparison to other occupations through 2018. Most graduates who complete associate’s or bachelor degrees gain employment within entry level positions and gradually advance to positions with greater responsibilities and higher salaries. Graduates with master’s degrees generally begin employment within managerial or teaching positions and advance to upper level administrative positions as they gain experience or continue education. Some graduates may also work independently as freelance writers or consultants upon gaining adequate experience, education, and funding.
